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Hyundai Ready to Let Genesis Fly

The Genesis car brand has grown up quickly.

Not long ago it was nothing more than a speck in the eye of its parent, Hyundai. Its early childhood was spent as the top model in the Hyundai range, then it grew into the new role of becoming its own brand while safely still living under its parents’ roof.

Now Genesis is already all grown up and desperate to leave the nest to try life on its own.

Genesis cars are currently sold out of Hyundai dealerships. The automaker employs a showroom-within-a-showroom model, but that clearly won’t work if the luxury brand truly wants to compete on the same level as Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, and others.

This month, the brand plans to announce a new retail strategy for the U.S. that will accelerate its separation from the Hyundai marque and significantly cut the number of dealerships authorized to sell Genesis models.

It’s a move that comes about two years earlier than originally planned, but fits nicely with upcoming product launches. According to Autoblog, those new products include three new crossover SUVs and an all-electric model in addition to the luxury sedans already offered under the luxury nameplate.

Already in its short existence Genesis has made quite an impression on Americans, coming in second, under Porsche, in JD Power’s Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) study.

It’s a different story in the U.K., though, where the brand has been killed off after finding only 50 buyers since launching in 2015.

Americans, though, have fallen for the good-looking offspring of Hyundai and will no doubt support the fledgling brand as it grows into adulthood.